Suspension Questions

[Burtonsnow157]

I have some money saved up and I want to lower my stang (03 GT) due to its 4x4 look it has right now. I figured i would go with the tokico blue shocks and struts and the springs that it comes with in the full kit (1.5'' drop)
The local shop wants $679 for parts and installation. I can buy the kit online for like $439.99 and was thinking about installing it myself.

I have some experience with working on my car and my dads a little and i'm pretty confident in my abilities but had a few important questions about suspension installation that hopefully you guys can help me with.

1.) should i do it myself for $440 of pay the shop $680 +tax
2.) is it actually hard to do or am i just thinking that
3.) does anyone have any walkthroughs they can link me to?
4.)if i install the shocks, struts and springs myself are there any things i need to have a shop do afterward to fully finish it (alignment or anything)
5.) caster/camber plates? should i bother or is it not necessary?
6.) should i lower it at all --will i scrape my cats and possibly bottom out from time to time?
i know those are a lot of questions but i dont wanna order any parts until i'm sure i can, and want to do this job with me and my friend in my driveway.

thanks guys

 

[twogts4us]

I have some money saved up and I want to lower my stang (03 GT) due to its 4x4 look it has right now. I figured i would go with the tokico blue shocks and struts and the springs that it comes with in the full kit (1.5'' drop)
The local shop wants $679 for parts and installation. I can buy the kit online for like $439.99 and was thinking about installing it myself.

I have some experience with working on my car and my dads a little and i'm pretty confident in my abilities but had a few important questions about suspension installation that hopefully you guys can help me with.

1.) should i do it myself for $440 of pay the shop $680 +tax

That's outrageous - do it yourself. Do you have air tools? They'll make life much easier. At least invest in an electric impact wrench.

2.) is it actually hard to do or am i just thinking that

The rear is simple. The front, with struts and CC plates is a little more challenging.

3.) does anyone have any walkthroughs they can link me to?

Let me look - yeah, there are many writeups available, so you'll be in good hands.

4.)if i install the shocks, struts and springs myself are there any things i need to have a shop do afterward to fully finish it (alignment or anything)

Alignment

5.) caster/camber plates? should i bother or is it not necessary?

With a 1.5" drop, it's pretty much mandatory.

6.) should i lower it at all --will i scrape my cats and possibly bottom out from time to time?

You may, on rare occasion, scrape the cats when going too fast over speed bumps and such...just take it slow and easy and you won't have any trouble. The tradeoff is well worth it.

i know those are a lot of questions but i dont wanna order any parts until i'm sure i can, and want to do this job with me and my friend in my driveway.

I was going to buy the same kit you are shopping for. It's a good kit. If you can afford a bit more, they have the Illumina shocks and struts in the same kit.

thanks guys

Your welcome! Most of us out here enjoy helping others and prefer your type of direct questions, rather than vagueness. You asked great questions. Best of luck. Be careful lof the tension in the front springs - It can HURT someone if it unloads! The rear springs are no biggie. But you'll be fine, it's not really a hard swap. Oh, and get quality CC Plates (like Maximum Motorsports). Remember, your wheels are counting on these devices. Don't skimp and try to save a lil bit on CC Plates.

 

[Mustang5L5]

The rears are a joke. The shocks in the rear are simple. Just unbolt and replace. No big deal.

For the rear springs, put the rear body on jackstands and a jack under the diff, remove the rear sway bar, unbolt the shocks and quad shocks and then lower the diff down and you can pull the springs out by hand literally. Then just put new springs in and jack up each side and reconnect the shock.

Fronts are a little trickier, but can be done without a spring compressor. You may need air tools for the top strut bolt however.

 

[Burtonsnow157]

With a 1.5" drop, it's pretty much mandatory

- in regard to c/c plates

what if i just got the tokico shocks and struts and got ford c-springs? they lower the car 1"-1.25"? -- priced them out on americanmuscle.com for only $440 for everything

would i still need c/c plates with a smaller drop like that (which i actually would prefer over the 1.5 to 1.75 drop anyway)

- if i did get c/c plates and install them, i'm assuming that i would then go to a shop to have the toe and camber/caster taken care of?

 

[40th GT]

would i still need c/c plates with a smaller drop like that (which i actually would prefer over the 1.5 to 1.75 drop anyway)

I doubt it.

 

[JimC]

I installed frpp "B" springs and needed cc plates. Most moderate drops don't require them but don't be surprised if you do.

 

[Mustang5L5]

C springs drop more than advertised. My C's dropped my 5.0 LX almos 2" in the front and it's a lighter car.

I also needed C/C plates as without them, the insides of my tires wore quicker.

 

[eliteJAE]

i just installed C-springs, and they didnt drop anywhere near enough to need C/C plates lol at least not on my car (99GT), i know that they might behave a bit differently on others.

you can install springs and rear shocks easily, without power tools or a spring compressor. Just a floor jack, at least 4 jack stands and a good set of wrenches/sockets (both Metric and Imperial). However, the front struts look much hard to loosen up, so +1 on an electric or pnuematic impact wrench to make it ALOT easier. Don't pay $200+ when you can do it yourself. I did it alone, but if you have a buddy to help you, it'll be tons easier.

Oh, and BTW, the drop with C's is pretty decent, i went with them instead of a prokit or sportlines cuz i don't want to be bottoming out all the time, and lord knows i never take the time to slow down haha Since you're buying shocks, you'll be in great shape

 

[twogts4us]

Yeah B or C springs are a good choice and priced right as well.

 

[Stark77]

I had C springs installed when my Bullitt suspension package was put on (the bullitt springs wouldn't have been enough of a drop) and the car rides and looks great. Give it a week or so to settle down in height.

 

[Burtonsnow157]

thanks for the input guys, i might be getting the tokico blues and the springs from the kit and the m.m 4 bolt c/c plates for $500 shipped from someone

 

[Killa]

where yall get c kit from ? and how much its ? thanks

 

[eliteJAE]

where yall get c kit from ? and how much its ? thanks

i got my set of C-springs from AmericanMuscle, and with a little member discount, i got em for $148

and if you mean shocks with c-springs kit...i have no idea lol

 

[TheDukeOfEarl]

What are you guys using to estabilish no need for CC plates? I bet your camber is all out of wack. I notice no one even mentioned checking the bump steer. 1/4 mile guys... sheesh LOL

 

[Stark77]

there isn't a kit from ford that has shocks/struts with C Springs - the Bullitt suspension upgrade package is awesome, but it comes with Bullitt springs instead of C springs - just buy the springs seperately - totally changed the way the car drives for the better

 

[HercFE]

I just put the B springs in my 02'. The ride is great and the drop looks good so far, should get better as it settles. As someone mentioned earlier, the back ones are easy. I found that disconnecting the tie rods and pulling the ABS harness out of the retaining clips let me lower the front control arm so low that I just had to pry the spring out with very little effort. I also lubed up the new one with some WD40 to get it to slide in easy. Put the new one in and jack it up till you can recconnect the bolts to the strut.